Scientology: The Hole

For years in a desert compound east of Los Angeles (“Gold Base” situated near the town of Hemet, in Riverside) dozens of managers for the Church of Scientology endured an unusual trial by fire. The church called it “ecclesiastical discipline,” part of the religion. But some managers came away with stories so troubling they attracted the attention of the FBI. They tell of incarceration. violence and abuse in a place called “the Hole.” The church says their stories are lies and exaggerations.

This is the most detailed account yet of what happened inside the Hole. It is based on numerous interviews with a dozen former members of the church’s religious order, the Sea Org, and on information found in church materials and court testimony.

A written version of this report, in the form of a magazine article, is available here.